Nut-blanching machine



J. G. KENNEDY.

NUT BLANCHING MACHlNE. APPLICATION m2o 1M/21.1920.

1,367,664. Pnted Feb. 8,1921.

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, UNITED STATES PA'ilazNT OFFICE.N

JAMES G. KENNEDY. or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, AssIGNon oF ONE-HALE To WILLIAM n.

Bnowmor CHICAGO, ILLINOIS. i

NUT-BLANCHING MACHINE.

Application inea May 21,

To all whom imag concern: y

Be it known that I, JAMES Gr. KENNEDY, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Chicago,A county of Cook, and State oflllinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Nut- Blanching Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to machines for removing the inner envelops, skins, chaff, or husks of nuts and grains. In the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings it is ldesigned particularly for removing the inner envelops or skins of almonds.

The design shown in principle imitates the natural action when the skins of almonds are removed by hand after the almonds have been steamed or dipped in hot water.

The objects of the invention are accomplished by the device shown in the accompanying' drawings, in, which Figure 1 is a front elevation of a machine constructed according to this invention. 4

Fig. 2 is a sectional detail taken on the line 2 2 of Fig. `1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional `detail taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a face view of a box cam for operating a feed regulating and agitating arm extendinginto one of the supply hoppers of the device.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged sectional detail 0f one of the skin1emoving elements audits supporting gear.

The principal structural features of this machine are a pair of coacting rotary rub- 4ber surfaced members between which: the

almonds are rubbed for the purpose of re-y moving the skins. These coacting members have arelative motion both in direction and surface speeds to produce the desired rubbing action on the almonds and are also ridged and grooved in a novel manner to cause the almonds to travel downwardly between or along the surfaces of said coacting members and thendownwardly between the same to a receiving conveyer. The conveyer carries the almonds beneath a plurality of suction nozzles which remove the loosened almond skins from the conveyer.

^ Referring to the drawings, `power. is Supplied to the device preferably by a single unit, such as an electric motor 1, which is beltedtofdrve. af'hloweiiand one of a plu- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 8, 1921.

1920. seriaiNo. 383,070.

rality of driving shafts, 3 for thealmond skin removing devices. The; driving shafts 3 are belted together by a chain 4 and one of these shafts is yalso belted to a conveyer driving shaft '5.

i The blower 2 is arranged to create an upward `flow of air through the nozzles 6 ad- `iacent the upper surface of the conveyer belt 7. The chaff, etc., which is on the conveyer is by this means removed and deliveredY to a receiving bag 8.

The almonds or other'seeds to be treated by the apparatus are delivered to the same in the receiver and ifthe articles treated are. almondsthese are preferably soaked in hot water before being placed on thereceiver. Scalding the almonds serves to soften them sufficiently` to permit passage through the machine without being broken orsplit and also loosensthe skins. The receiver- 9 communicates with the skin removing devices driven by shafts 3, by the hoppers 10. The outletA .11 of each hopper is Vcontrolled by anoscillating arm 12 which regulates the rate of feed of the almonds and serves to agitate the same suiiiciently to prevent clogging at the outlet of the hopper. The arm 12 is oscillated around its bearing 13 bythe boX cam 14 fastened to shaft 3. The shaft?) also carries fast a pinion 15,v a cylindrical rubber 16 and a pair of brushes 17, which are clamped 'to a square portion 1S of the shaft. The pinion 15 is beveled and meshes with a bevel gear 19 so that the latter may drive a rubber disk 20 having an axis atiriglfit angles to the axis of the roller 16 and for cooperating therewith.- The rubberdisk 20 is supported in `an annular recess 21 formed in an annular "flange 22 on the face of; gear 19.

The face of gear 19 is concave, as-indi-r cated in Fig. 5 by the numeralY 23, to permitthe disk to recede from roller 16 when forced by the passage ofnalmonds. i

The diskQO is provided with a plurality of spiral ridges 24 radiating from the center of the disk. The function of these ridges is Ato carry downwardly almonds which fail` to immediately pass between the `roller and the disk. T he centrifugal action of the disk on almonds in the trough, formed by the disk and roller, causes any remaining almonds to travelto theleftof the.` roller and theni downwardly atthexgrooves "25. rEhe gear19; and` disk 20; rotatein the di ilo rection indicated by the arrow 26, which is necessary to cause the almonds to work between the disk and roller, or toward the left of the roller.

The treated almonds from which the skins have been removed drop onto the conveyer 7. The almond skins which adhere to the corrugated disk 20 are removed therefrom and permitted to fall on the conveyer by means of the rotary brushes 17.

In the operation of the device the almonds from the hoppers 10 are fed to the troughs formed ybetween rollers 16 and disk 20 in the separate skin removing devices. The iiow of almonds to each device is controlled `by one of the oscillating agitating arms 12. The roller 16 andl disk 2O have nearly the same peripheral speeds at the left end of roller 16, being geared together just outside of this point. From this point toward the center of disk 20 the relative peripheral speeds change uniformly, asthe central part of disk 20 moves much more slowly. By

this means the rubbing action of the two cor -this invention has been herein shown and described, it will be understood that numerous details of the construction shown may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of this invention as defined by the following claims.

I claim: Y

1. A machine of the class described, comprising a pair `of resiliently surfaced coacting members, means for rotating said members, one of said members being in the form of a disk and the other member being cylindrical in form, and a ridge on the surface of one'of said members for causing seeds to pass betweensaid members.

2. A machine of the class described, comprising a disk and a cylinder having axes at right angles forthe purposeof coacting by a. rubbingaction on seeds delivered between said members, thedisk-shaped member having a ridge radiating from its center for the purpose of causing seeds to pass between said members. f

3. A machine of the class described, comprising a disk and a cylinder having axes at lright angles for the purpose of coacting a rubbing'action on seeds delivered between said members, the disk-shaped memf ber'having a ridge radiating from its cen ter and the cylindrical member having an annular-groove at one end.

y 4:. VA machine of the class described, com prising coacting rotary disk and cylinder, the surfaces of said disk being ridged radially and means for rotating said disk and cylinder. Y

5. A machine of the class described, comprising a coacting resilient disk and a cylinder, means for rotating said disk and cylinder, and a support for said disk having a concave surface opposed to the disk.

6; A machine of the class described, comprising a coacting resilient disk and cylinder, means for rotating said disk and cylinder, the disk having a ridge radiating from its center, and a support-for the disk having a concave surface opposed to the disk.

7. A machine of the class described, comprising a coacting resilient disk and cylinder, means for rotating said disk and cylinder, the coacting surface of the disk having a plurality ofY spiral grooves 'radiating from its center.

8. A machine of the class described, comprising a pair of coacting driven members, one of said members having a resilient surface, one of said members being in thev form of ardisk, and the remaining member being in the form of a cylinder said cylinder having an annular groove at one end and said disk having a ridge radiating from its center.

9. A machine of the class described, comprising a pair of coacting driven members,

one of said members having a resilient surface, one of said members being 1n the form oi' a disk, and the vremaining member being in the form of a cylinder, 'said cylinder hav'- ing an annular 'groove at one end and said ldisk having a ridge radiating from its center, anda rotary brush coaxial with said cylinder and arranged to clean the surface of said disk. Y 10. A nut blanching machine comprising a disk and cylinder having axes at right angles and arranged to yieldably coact by a rubbing action on nuts delivered between said diskk and cylinder.y and means tating the disk and cylinder.

11. A nut blanching machine comprising a disk and cylinder havingazie's at right angles and arranged to coact by rubbing action on nuts delivered Vbetween said disk and cylinder, and means for rotating the disk and cylinder.

12. A nut blanching machine comprising a pair of driven coacting resilient members,

said members being arranged to have rela-` JAMES G. KENNEDY.

for ro- 

